The lovely was involved in one of those freak track crashes that should have been innocuous, but ended up a real pain in the ass. She’s got a plate-date with the sawdoc on Friday to connect her floaters. It’s a pretty clean, middle break of the clavicle … so, not as gawdawful for surgery. But still ~ any time you have to go under anesthesia it’s a situation worth avoiding.

Reckin’ bicycles. It’s what we do.

-

The more years that pass underneath these tires, the more i see that … it takes a good bit of luck.

in all things.

– – – – –

the Tour reminds …

There is beauty in this year’s Tour de France. Without a rah-rah superstar to be all e-invested in, without any uber-team menchenhausen pedal hero or anti-s storming unstoppable …

this year’s Tour reminds us that bicycle racing kicks ass.

The ’08 Tour will be remembered as a staging point, not yet a starting point. The culture of clean is being sniffed at, toyed with … tested. If Jens Voigt can ride clean at the front of the Tourmalet … anything is possible. and glorious.

–

Cadel Evans as a winner in Paris seems unthinkable. I won’t be disappointed if it’s him. I like what Evans shows us on the televisions. But, equally so … i won’t mind it if we see some new shake-ups or crack-downs over the next half of a glorious event. This bicycle race has been all the two-wheeled soap operatic show that it should be and the prospects of a few more plot turns, twists, or dive bombs excite … streetlike.

all hail sport.

it’s better than war on the chamois and a hell of a lot less costly.

– – – – –

AlpenRoses for some, girodayWatsonVile for others

my homies are heading north for the Alpenrose fiesta of velodrome’ness. i have to be honest, it’s causing me some suck that i can’t head up there with and show those fine northwest’ers some of our Hellyer wares. i’ve been looking forward to this trip for awhile, but with Sabine going under the knife on Friday … it’s homebound without doubt. I might scoot out for a couple hours to race the crit in Watsonville … but, we’ll have to see how she’s doing.

Watsonville is a crabgrass little crit through a neighborhood that splits the sides of the tracks something straight out of mason-dixon. You park in vato-centrAL, and race through aunt Mae’s lemonade stand.

This is a crit i’ve loved the hard way. It’s an attacker’s race requiring a decent bit of bike handling and isn’t one for the pure sprinters. But this year the BBC are scheduled against the re-newed San Luis Obispo Criterium … so, attendance might be split some between the two Sunday events.

San Luis Obispo ~ man, that sounds like a good time. may just have to consider …

we’ll see how the woman is doing.

– – – – –

VanderKitten’s JenWilson bubbling away at the head of USA CRITS

I’m super-psyched for Jen to be leading this prestigious series. Cheerwine’s Kelly Benjamin will be a monster to keep away from the front of the USA CRITS for the rest of the year ~ but Wheels will fight for it.

Jen is one of these fabulous women getting involved with our sport nowadays. I’m proud to be associated with women like Wilson … strong, intelligent, loving the bike and willing to give everything to the life. These women kick ass.

And ~ they are great spokespeople for businesses, products, organizations.

You watch for it … women’s cycling is going to be generating strong advertising dollars in the coming years. And it will be internet driven.

very cool.

– – – – –

dreams day hernando

For some reason, night visions of vampires have feasted on me the past few weeks. I’ve been reinserting myself into this running world where vampires do exist, but constrained by our popular myths of what a haunting spirit should be.

The vampires are these invisible, undetectable, uninfluencible undead filled with unrest that only gain manifestation by some psycho-psychic bite into us ~ marking us as there own … bonding, seducing, overpowering or whatever vampy types do ~ causing some sort of hybrid linkage of live and haunted, breathing and wanting, parasite and now-influenced host. The vampy spirit can only be seen by the bitten and the relationship is utterly symbiotic and ruthlessly volitile. The bitten, smitten humans are at the whim of the infestation, the manipulations of mad or mean spirits ~ making us talk out loud, unedited and unhindered as to public menace or perceived arrival in crazy-town USA.

But some vampy spirits are cultured, fighting beasts … aware of each other and their undead rankings of great and small, power hungry all. And the dreams gather more interest to me when seen that human existence is but a pretty-painted chess board for haunted hands to move, bid for, break. Politics, sport, business … all but filled with individuals bonded, beholdant, benefiting or not from these feasting beasts.

-

dreams distract …

– – – – –

supa-training

i’ve decided that my now-favorite training day is filled with fat tread and never-ending ups.

So glad you’re back Michael and that your lady is on the heal-up. On Pro teams, is anyone else freaked out as I am that the Russians are getting way involved in the sport? Too much money leads to selling your soul to the devil. I’m scared as hell and for good reason (check out the latest financial pages). We are trying so hard to clean up our sport of cycling — oh please, please let my feeling be wrong and not another oil for drugs fiasco.

Where’s all this money coming from? Cyclingews: “Oleg Tinkoff announced that his Tinkoff Credit Systems squad would evolve into a far bigger team in 2009. Renamed Katusha, the budget for the squad will be in excess of €15 millon per annum, comprising over half of the €30 million pledged to the new Russian Global Cycling Project foundation.”

I hope Sabine’s surgery goes well and she heals up quick! Crashing, just no fun at all! Good thoughts coming her way.

And as far as races, everyone, on Saturday down here is the Sisquoc RR. Hilly (700 ft climb per lap, 12 mile lap), hot, and hellacious, just like the hill climbing types (me not included) like them! And then of course the super-fun SLO crit is Sunday! A fun weekend of racing in CentralCal. I also heard that there was some sort of points series for the weekend for the Women 4’s, so any women 4’s, there will be extra prizes… I had originally heard that the women 3’s would also be having some sort of special series, but since Sisquoc only has a W1-3 race, I’m not sure how that will be working.

Evans unthinkable as a Tour winner…………
i agree with you
he was 2nd last year so it is unthinkable he could win this year
he has proven himself again and again and was 3rd overall in the first TT this year
so it is unthinkable he could win the Tour
each year he has moved up a few places on the final GC in Paris
so it is unthinkable he could win the tour out right

i think sastre could win
or maybe rico
or maybe hincapie

shoot if they did not drug test now a days maybe Riis could come back and throw it down up alp de huez

Thanks for J-Dub props. She continues to chase her dream of a top-level victory and battling with stitches (11 in her chin), bruises and lots of road rash… but she continues to battle! Which brings me to my love and respect for Sabine and her warrior-with-flair bellattitude.

There are so many fabulous women out there and I more excited to be involved with women’s cycling than my own foray into downhill and BMX obscurity! This one goes to 11!

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